A recent survey of buyers buying a Long Island NY home indicated that a whopping 80% said there was at least one thing they regretted about the home.

The number one complaint:The home just isn't big enough, mortgage information site HSH.com found. Others complained about a lack of closet space or that the place didn't have enough bathrooms. Bad neighbors were also a problem, as was a substandard school system.

A lot of those issues could have been avoided. Of course, some factors, like bad neighbors, can't be anticipated. And some conditions change over time. Nearby property may be developed into a shopping mall or freeway, for instance.

Tips When Buying a Long Island NY Home

To keep you from buying a Long Island NY home you'll regret, follow these tips:

Don't give in on your core requirements. If you know that having three bathrooms is important for your happiness but the Long Island NY home you're looking at only has two, keep shopping.

Don't let yourself fall in love with a Long Island NY home that doesn't match your needs. Regret may not set in right away, but when it does, the fix, like adding a bathroom, might cost you a fortune.

Don't cave in to a partner or spouse. If you believe you will be unhappy in your new Long Island NY home, don't let your wife of husband talk you into buying it. It will only cause resentment.

Know your give-in points. Everyone house hunts with a wish list, but there are some items that can be compromised. Tiny kitchens might be a deal breaker if you are an avid cook but maybe you can live without a den.

Don't lose your edge. Once a shopper makes the decision to buy a Long Island NY home, they sometimes overlook major issues. If the home inspector finds dry rot in the joists or the appraisal comes in lower than the sale price, stand your ground: either pull out of the deal or get the seller to lower the price to reflect the cost of the repairs. Consider the advantages of having your own buyer's agent to help you in the home search process.

Do your research. These days, there's a ton of information available on the web that can help you in your search for a new Long Island NY home. We can help you get the stats you need on the quality of school systems, walkability and access to restaurants, as well as crime, that will help you assess whether a neighborhood or area is right for you.

You'll find many more tips on buying a Long Island NY home in our Long Island NY Homebuyer Tips section of articles in the Long Island NY Real Estate Categories to your right.

We also post other tips on buying a Long Island NY home on Twitter, and Facebook as well. Be sure to follow us there.

New research from the real estate website Trulia finds that it's cheaper to buy a Long Island NY home than it is to rent one. The advantage narrows considerably, however, when the home buyer uses a low-down-payment loan insured by the Federal Housing Administration.

The average cost of homeownership, including mortgage, insurance, taxes and maintenance, is 38 percent less than the cost of renting, according to the latest Trulia data. This is an even bigger gap than last year, when Trulia estimated homeownership was 35 percent cheaper.

Reasons Buying a Long Island NY Home Is Cheaper Than Renting

One reason for the improved conditions to buy a Long Island NY home is that the 30-year fixed interest rate for mortgages has been lower this year than last. And the other is that rents are rising faster than buying a Long Island NY home because of strong demand.

For many people, the down payment is still a barrier to buying a Long Island NY home. And for people who lost a home in foreclosure, it might still be a while before they can buy. Even though it's a good time to buy a Long Island NY home, many renters are stuck in place. 74 percent of renters have incomes below $50,000, compared with 41 percent of homeowners.

58 percent of renters said they would be unlikely or unable to come up with $2,000 within 30 days to cover an unexpected expense — never mind a down payment to buy a Long Island NY home to start with.

The reverse is true for a typical Federal Housing Administration loan with 3.5 percent down, which requires upfront and monthly mortgage insurance premiums, and builds equity much more slowly. In that case, the advantage dropped to 25 percent. And in some areas, the advantage was 10 percent or less.

Buying a home with an F.H.A. loan is still less expensive than renting almost everywhere if you plan to stay for at least seven years and can benefit from the mortgage interest tax deduction. But financing a purchase this way could be more costly than renting for more mobile buyers, particularly younger people.

Don't forget to find us on Facebook and Follow us on Twitter for daily updates on news that affects buying a Long Island NY home.

Thinking of buying a Long Island NY home? You may be better making the decision sooner rather than later!

If you qualify for a mortgage and choose not to buy now, you will be kicking yourself a year from now.

Thanks to very low inventory, Long Island NY home prices are projected to increase by 6.3 percent through April 2015, according to a recent study by Corelogic, a leading global property information, analytics, and data-enabled services provider.

Just how much could that increase cost you? More than you might think. On a $300,000 house today, the same house will cost you $318,000 a year from now.

4 Reasons Why Buying a Long Island NY Home Now is a Smart Move

#1 – Buying a Long Island NY home will only become more expensive because of low inventory and rising demand. With a shortage of housing and rental units available, Long Island NY housing prices and rents have increased, leading to affordability issues. The good news is that this supply and demand issue will solve itself once more housing units are built to accommodate the population growth and young families looking at buying a Long Island NY home. The bad news is that it could take a while, and prices will climb until then. So now might be a good time to buy, before prices peak.

#2 – Buying a Long Island NY home will certainly cost more, even if prices don't increase, because of the Fed planning to taper off bond-buying in October. The Fed is now buying $25 billion per month, down from $85 billion at the peak. The end of the program, which was aimed to keep interest rates low, is expected to result in higher interest rates, and any increase in interest rates could create even less favorable conditions for buyers.

Rising rates can have just as big an impact on affordability as does rising prices due to low housing inventory. When mortgage rates increase, borrowers experience greater difficulty qualifying when they are wanting to buy.

While you've already missed the bottom of the market with home prices, interest rates are still very low. Don't risk rates going up, which can ultimately cost you big on your home's price tag.

#3 – Buying a Long Island NY home will continue to become less affordable due to the current economy's flat wages. If home prices continue to increase, housing could in theory become less affordable if your take-home pay doesn't keep up with its growth. Can you afford to wait?

#4 – Buying a Long Island NY home now rather than later will have you beating others to the punch who procrastinate and wait til later to buy. The pent-up demand of younger professionals, who moved back in with their parents during the recession, is about to explode. And as these young people move out and form new households of their own, they will drive up housing demand.

While the competition helps the overall home values in the area, it also inflates prices to the point where buying Long Island NY homes is no longer affordable for a large percentage of potential home buyers. It's only expected to get worse as more and more young professionals feel ready to buy, so it's a smart move to buy now and avoid the potential price gouging altogether.

Stay abreast of all the news that affects buying a Long Island NY home right here at our website. More articles can be found in the Long Island NY Real Estate section, or the Long Island NY Real Estate News section, both to your right under Long Island NY Real Estate Categories.

When buying a Long Island NY home, obviously a job is an important cog in the wheel to obtaining a mortgage. But the lending game is full of misconceptions about job gaps, job changes and occupational changes within the course of an employment time frame. Yes, you CAN get a mortgage if you switched jobs or even changed industries, you just have to approach it the right way to get the deal approved.

When determining your ability to pay (and therefore determining how much Long Island NY home you can afford to buy), a lender will calculate your average income based on your pay from the past 24 months. It's pretty straightforward and simple if you've had the same job and same income and pay structure, but if any of those things changed in the past two years — or will change soon, you may face challenges when trying to get a mortgage.

Don't Change Jobs When Buying A Long Island NY Home

In the past, lenders were ready to refuse loan applications where there was a job or industry change. We even tell prospects looking at buying a Long Island NY home not to change jobs before applying for their home loan. While this is the case for most situations, it is not necessarily so black-and-white.

If you've had a job change, no matter what, a lender is going to need the following things from you — and your employer — in order to close on a mortgage: an offer letter, a role change letter if you have a title change and commensurate compensation package change, and the most recent pay stub and verification of employment.

If you can't provide a pay stub with year-to-date income (usually a 30-day pay stub depending on your specific lender's requirement), along with a letter detailing the change, you likely won't get approved for the loan. Let's say, for example, you are looking at buying a Long Island NY home and you know in the next four months your income is going to increase to $6,000 per month because you'll have a new role within your company. In order for that $6,000 per month income to be used in the calculation, you'll have to get the details of the raise, including the role change letter and at least one pay stub.

So if you are thinking about getting a mortgage, even if it is further down the road, consider starting discussions with a lender now so you can be guided through any income bumps the past or future may hold. It is especially critical for homebuyers to get pre-approved with a lender upfront prior to house-hunting. This process includes allowing a lender to review your credit, debt, income and assets to assess your ability to qualify. When buying a Long Island NY home, being pre-approved greatly increases your chances of getting a yes from a seller.

This is also a good time to start looking over your credit reports and checking your credit scores so you can address any problems in advance of applying for a mortgage.

Stay abreast of all the tips and tricks affecting your ability to obtain a mortgage and buying a Long Island NY home here at our website. More articles regarding Long Island NY mortgages can be found by clicking on the Long Island NY Mortgage Info link to your right under Long Island NY Real Estate Categories.

Trying to decide between renting or buying a Long Island NY home used to be a no-brainer before the recession. Most advisors would say, buy a home as soon as you can because it was the route to financial independence, forget renting because it was a waste of money.

Today, many people who would have once jumped at the chance of buying a Long Island NY home are thinking a little more about it and weighing their options.

Attitudes about homeownership have shifted, according to "How Housing Matters: The Housing Crisis Continues to Loom Large in the Experiences and Attitudes of the American Public," by the MacArthur Foundation.

When asked, compared with 20 or 30 years ago, how likely it is for families today to build equity and wealth through homeownership, two-thirds of respondents to a poll accompanying the report said it is less likely than in the past. And that sentiment was pretty consistent along all income and age groups.

Buying a Long Island NY Home Tempting

Now that things are improving in the Long Island NY housing market, people may be tempted to rush into homeownership because they want to take advantage of lower home prices. Or they are afraid of missing out on still fairly low interest rates for home mortgages.

The big decision point is, if the time isn't right and your numbers don't work, keep renting and keep saving.

Some people in the MacArthur poll deciding to buy instead of continuing to rent had to get a second job, stopped saving for retirement or racked up credit card debt trying to cover their housing expenses.

The study revealed that families are spending 40 to 50 percent or more of their net monthly income on housing. If you are spending more than 30 to 36 percent on housing, you're probably headed for trouble. It's why most lenders use that magic 36 percent figure to qualify you for a mortgage. If you're spending more than that, they fear you may be in over your head, and the last thing they want is for you to default on your loan.

Obviously we are a huge advocate of homeownership. However, when it comes to something as important and expensive as a home, you should take it slow. Take as much time as you need to become comfortable with the decision of buying a Long Island NY home. And when the time is right, we'll help you find the home of your dreams.

Call us or fill out our brief inquiry form at this site and we'll help you decide between renting or buying a Long Island NY home and which is right for you.